Supporters of a second EU referendum in Parliament Square (AFP Photo/ Oli SCARFF) |
London (AFP) - Britons who have changed their minds since voting to leave the European Union in 2016 are among those uniting to call for another chance to reverse the decision.
These
"Remainer now" voters, former Brexit supporters, are adding their
voices to the chorus of calls for a second referendum amid political paralysis
in Britain over the issue.
Gary
Maylin, 38, from Norwich in eastern England, said he originally backed leaving
the bloc after more than four decades of membership because he "wanted
sovereignty for the UK".
He recalled
facing a barrage of pro-Brexit sentiment at the time which influenced his
choice.
"My MP
was (pro-)Leave, all the arguments I heard were for Leave," he told AFP.
"So I
decided the EU was to blame for a lot of the things that were going wrong --
the inability of our government to control our destiny."
British PM
Theresa May said Thursday that could not rule out a potentially
damaging
"no-deal" split with the EU (AFP Photo/HO)
|
Political
turmoil
The world's
fifth-largest economy is in political turmoil and grasping for solutions that
could smooth its planned departure from the bloc just 10 weeks from now.
British
Prime Minister Theresa May is scrambling to put together a new Brexit strategy
after MPs rejected her EU divorce deal, but admitted Thursday that she can not
rule out a potentially damaging "no-deal" split.
Maylin was
among 51.9 percent of voters to support leaving the bloc in the nationwide
referendum two and-a-half years ago, trumping the 48.1 percent who went for
Remain.
But he says
he would now "absolutely" vote the other way.
"I've
come to appreciate that we are not going to... succeed as a nation on our
own," Maylin explained, adding "walking away isn't working for
us".
"We
really benefit from being strong as a united Europe rather than independent as
a country," he said, pointing to everything from US President Donald Trump
to the continued rise of China.
Calls for
a second referendum
Earlier
this week, Maylin joined a dozen or so other Brexit converts who headed to
Westminster, the epicentre of political power, to tell British MPs why they now
want another referendum.
The meeting
was organised by "RemainerNow", an initiative launched by a
Europhile, Andrew Davidson, in his spare time with a presence online.
The cry for
a 'People's Vote' - a second Brexit referendum - is increasing (AFP
Photo/Ben
STANSALL)
|
Davidson
was left "disturbed" by the 2016 result and spurred into action by
meeting regretful Brexit voters.
"There
was so many people both in my personal life but also I've seen on social media
or TV that had regrets over their Leave vote," he said.
His
movement is hopeful of seeing a second vote -- repeatedly rejected by the
government -- as opinion polls show a majority would now support Remain.
A recent
compilation of surveys by the non-partisan organisation "What UK Thinks:
EU" found 54 percent now favour staying in.
Brexiteers
have argued that such polls -- which showed Leave would narrowly lose in 2016
-- consistently ignores harder-to-reach Brexit supporters and are inaccurate.
But
people's fears over the economic impact of leaving the bloc are real, according
to pollsters.
"If
you voted Leave but you now think that the economy will suffer as a result,
your chances of voting leaving again come down to about 50 percent or so,"
John Curtice, one of Britain's leading survey experts, told AFP.
'Promises
were broken'
Christopher
Oram, from the southwestern English county of Dorset, is another former Brexit
supporter who believes he was lulled into the wrong decision.
Many of
those who voted in 2016 to leave the EU have not changed their
minds (AFP
Photo/Tolga AKMEN)
|
"We
had the MPs who were saying that we could have our cake and eat it," Oram
said, noting campaign promises of money saved, easy trade deals and a
prosperous future.
"Then
I heard that we were going to leave the single market and custom unions so,
again, I'm in shock," added the 28-year-old.
"All
the promises were broken."
Those who
have lost faith in Brexit revealed it had not been easy sharing news of their
switch with friends and family who have stayed loyal to the cause.
Maylin said
he has been harassed on social media, while Oram quarrelled with his best
friend over the issue.
"He
still thinks that we should be leaving, so that causes a lot of tensions
between myself and him," he said.
"Our
partners have now said that we're not allowed to talk about Brexit over the
dinner table any more."
Other
friends have shunned Oram in response.
"I
find upsetting that people don't accept... I have the right to change my
mind," he added.
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